Every first-buyer guide focuses on the sticker price. The number that actually matters is what the watch costs you over ten years. Service. Insurance. The strap you will inevitably replace. Sometimes a bracelet repair. The five-year and ten-year totals look very different from the number on the tag.
This calculator runs the numbers for your specific budget and movement tier. Enter your intended purchase price, pick a service tier and horizon assumptions, and see both totals side by side. For the deeper treatment of why each cost line matters, see the budget-setting guide.
Assumptions used
Service cost. Mid-point figures by tier: Swiss standard (ETA, Sellita) at ~USD 400 per service; in-house mid-tier (Tudor, Omega Master Co-Axial) at ~USD 600; Rolex / high-end in-house at ~USD 1,000. Service interval defaults to 6 years for Swiss and in-house, 10 years for Rolex / high, which you can override.
Insurance. Specialist watch insurance from providers like Hodinkee Insurance and Jewelers Mutual typically runs 0.8–1.5% of appraised value per year. The default 1.0% is the middle of that band.
Strap / bracelet budget. Minimal assumes occasional rubber or NATO strap replacements over the decade. Standard accounts for leather strap replacement every 2–3 years. Bracelet replacement assumes an OEM steel bracelet swap or major link work at some point in the horizon.
What is not included. Depreciation and resale value vary too sharply by reference to model honestly here; the budget article covers which references hold value and which do not. Import duty and sales tax depend on your jurisdiction and purchase channel. Pressure testing every few years (water-resistant watches) is a minor cost not modeled.
Currency conversion uses approximate rates as of 2026-05-15. Service and insurance figures are USD-authored from industry data; conversion is applied to the display values.